Thousands of people joined a walk in Hanoi Sunday to start a one-month campaign to support Agent Orange victims, marking the 50th anniversary of an American military operation to spray the toxic chemical over Vietnam.

Tens of thousands of students and older residents participated in the walk, the Vietnam News Agency said.

During the opening ceremony of the campaign, Truong Thi Mai, chairwoman of the National Assembly Committee of Social Affairs, and Tran Ngoc Tang, president of Vietnam's Red Cross, granted scholarships to several children from families affected by the weed killer.

They also gave wheelchairs to a number of Agent Orange victims.

Organizers of the campaign also received blood donations for victims who needed transfusion.

A photographic exhibition of Agent Orange consequences for the victims and their families was open during the ceremony.

Vietnam's Red Cross, the chief organizer at the campaign, expects to raise around VND70 billion (US$3.4 million) in gifts and cash from organizations, businesses and individuals during the campaign, which will end September 10.